The Magic community is no stranger to drama. Every decision Wizards makes regarding the game splits the player base into factions. Some players complain so regularly it’s hard to believe they enjoy the game at all. For that reason, it’s nice when an issue comes forward that brings the community together, and unites them under a single voice. Yesterday, Tesla CEO and all-round font of internet drama Elon Musk implied that he’s considering buying Hasbro. This would, in turn, give him ownership of Wizards of the Coast, and Magic: The Gathering. Naturally, players had a few things to say about this.
Elon Musk Is Buying Hasbro?!
Before we get into the very loud, very notable community reaction, let’s break down the chain of events itself. Yesterday, Elon Musk replied to another tweet by Ian Miles Cheong with four simple words: “How much is Hasbro?” Taken in context with Cheong’s tweet, which expressed disapproval of the current Dungeons & Dragons Project Lead Jason Tondro, the implication here is clear. Seriously or in jest, Elon Musk is considering buying Hasbro.
This interaction is the follow-up to a longer Musk-related saga. Last week on November 22nd, Musk replied to a tweet by Mark Kern, AKA Grummz, criticizing a disclaimer in the new ‘Making of D&D’ book. His response was emphatic, to say the least.
“Nobody, and I mean nobody, gets to trash E. Gary Gygax and the geniuses who created Dungeons & Dragons. What the fuck is wrong with Hasbro and WoTC?? May they burn in hell.”
Elon Musk
Clearly, Musk and his cohort are pretty worked up about the current state of D&D, which explains the desire to purchase Hasbro and change the game’s direction. For anyone who spends any regular time on Twitter, this isn’t particularly surprising. Musk and the two others referenced above are well-known detractors of “DEI” and “Woke ideology” in games. What this boils down to, in most cases, is being critical of games that dare to offer representation beyond the established norm.
In any case, it’s hard to tell at face value whether this desire is genuine or just another provocative Elon Musk tweet. His activity on the site has skyrocketed since he purchased it back in 2022. Much of that is similar to the Hasbro tweet pictured above but ultimately doesn’t amount to real action in the end. Just last week, he made a very similar tweet about purchasing news company MSNBC. In other words, it would be wise not to place too much stock in this tweet for now.
Not On Our Watch
“The only people that actually want Elon Musk to buy Hasbro are the dumbest people you know. Just the most brain dead, slimey, ignorant fucks you have ever seen. Traumatically massive levels of brain worms.”
PleasantKenobi
The legitimacy of Musk’s interest aside, players in both the Magic and D&D communities were quick to rally against it in anger. PleasantKenobi’s take above seems extreme, but it’s honestly pretty indicative of where the community as a whole stands right now.
Over on Facebook, Privateer of the East set up a poll to discuss whether or not Musk should buy Hasbro. At time of writing, 24% of respondents said yes, 2% said not sure, and 74% said no. That’s a pretty big majority by anyone’s standards. The comments below really hammered home the overall community sentiment, too.
Jane Cameron put it succinctly: “Absolutely not. I don’t want him anywhere near this game.” Michael Jimenez took things a step further: “I couldn’t even imagine a worse possible outcome. Hasbro would be better off ceasing operations than to let Musk anywhere near it.” Some commenters had more specific concerns. Kevin Villa, for example, added “If he buys Hasbro he’s gonna fire all the writers, artists, and card designers and replace them all with AI.” Given that Musk expressed the desire to start an AI games studio just two days ago, there’s genuine weight to this.
“MTG players and I have had our differences over the years I promise you – the Yu-Gi-Oh! community will do everything in our power to ensure this does not come to pass.”
MBTYuGiOh
It’s not just Magic and D&D players who are weighing in, either. As MBTYuGiOh’s tweet above shows, this could become an issue that affects everyone in the tabletop gaming space. Elon Musk buying Hasbro is not an outcome almost anyone truly involved in these games seems to want at present.
That said, as I covered above, it’s not too likely to actually happen. Beyond Musk’s tweet, no real wheels appear to be in motion just yet.
